


What Now?

by Movie_Riggs



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Sad, Short little thing, doesn't make sense as far as continuity goes but then again it doesn't really matter
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-13
Updated: 2018-11-13
Packaged: 2019-08-22 23:50:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 519
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16607792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Movie_Riggs/pseuds/Movie_Riggs
Summary: Stan Lee's characters remember him.





	What Now?

It was about one o'clock in the afternoon when Tony felt it. He didn't know just what _it_ was, but it was not a good feeling. It felt too much like one of his anxiety attacks, but somehow different. 

He dropped the tools he was working with and rubbed his eyes with his palms in exhaustion. Nearby was a pair of sunglasses with sharp blue lenses. 

"F.R.I.D.A.Y., feel like going for a walk?"

"I sure do, boss," F.R.I.D.A.Y. said, sounding oddly sincere for an artificial intelligence. 

Tony took the elevator down and left Avengers Tower from the first floor as if he were another average Stark Industries employee and not Iron Man himself. 

His stroll led him through Manhattan, Central Park and the rest of the city till he came upon a meek little cemetery in a green meadow.

No one appeared to be around, but something in Tony told him he was right where he was supposed to be.

"You felt it too, huh?"

Tony jumped a little at the voice, then instantly regained his cool and acted as if it hadn't happened. He looked beyond a large tree whose leaves were beginning to fall to see a familiar figure standing in front of a marble gravestone. One of Steve's hands rested in his jacket pocket. The other held his baseball cap, which he had removed from his head in respect.

Tony walked over to join Steve, casting a glance down at the gravestone. He didn't recognize the name on it, but whoever he was, the man had been almost a century old. 

"Who was he?" Tony asked. His first guess would have been that it was someone Steve might have known briefly before going under the ice, but that wouldn't explain why Tony felt the same wrench in his gut that Cap clearly did.

Steve gave a small shake of his head. "I don't know," he said drearily. After a pause, he added, "But he was a good man."

"Yeah." Tony nodded.

"Mr. Stark?"

Peter, dressed in a Midtown High hoodie as if he had just come from school, sounded like he was choking back a few tears. Once more, Tony didn't understand why but felt like it made sense. Something said that if anyone should feel the most pain and the most loss, it was Spider-Man. Tony didn't like that, but there wasn't much he could do about it. In fact, there wasn't a thing that anyone he knew could have done about it. Not this time.

"C'mere, kid," he said simply, opening up his arms. Peter stepped into the comforting embrace of his mentor.

Tony looked back to Cap.

"So...what now?"

"I don't know," Steve admitted with a sigh. "I guess we just...wait for the others to show up."

Even when they all had shown up--every Avenger, every Guardian, and all their friends and even a few former enemies--it was quite a while before any of them left the little gravestone, feeling like a piece of them was resting under it.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to Stan Lee for making the lives of myself and so many other people in this world ten times better than they would have been otherwise. I guess one person can make a difference. 'Nuff said.


End file.
